Templar Tale's
by Shartae
Summary: [Dragon Quest VIII] During his time at Purgatory Island Angelo ponders on his half brother and the situation at hand. Slight hints of Angelo x Jessica


_Part I / III_

_Disclaimer: No ownership for me. Otherwise I would have made a happy ending for Marcello._

_Spoilers: If you haven't gotten to Purgatory Island you might not understand what's going on. _

**Templar Tale's**

Days, maybe weeks, who knew in this place, had gone by in dark gloomy silence with only the moans of half-dead men lying around the cold cage that made up most of Purgatory Island. Angelo had noticed after a few days that it got colder at night as well, a sure sign that they were close to the northern continents, not that it mattered much.

Some of the others had attempted to make conversation with him before, but they had all become silent when his response was a solemn bow of his head as his mind wandered far from the place he stood. Angelo had told the Guv that he wasn't in the mood to talk and that was the end of the nagging worried questionnaires that he received from his friends.

It wasn't that he didn't want to confide with his friends. He always believed that talking through your problems was the best method of dealing with life, but he didn't know what to say.

Didn't know if he should defend Marcello or curse him. If they ran into each other again after this, would Angelo have to kill his half brother?

" Ne, Angelo?" a soft questioning voice queried hesitantly.

He looked up from the spot he sat at near the edge of the cage and found Jessica standing over him. She looked a little worn from the days in the darkness with little to no food.

" Can I sit down?" she asked after a moment.

" Of course, I would never turn down a fine woman's need for comfort," Angelo said the edge of his charm coming back to him.

" Very funny," she replied sarcastically as she slipped to her knees on the green blanket nearby.

They sat in relative silence for a time as the rest of the residence inside the cage moved to settle in for what seemed to be night. Angelo could tell from the cold air drafting in.

" What do you think?" Jessica murmured catching Angelo's attention again. " Do you think we'll ever get out of here?"

He wanted to say of course, that they'd be out of here soon enough, but what came out instead was, " …Perhaps."

Maybe it was the gloom that seemed to hang over everything or the fact that he himself had given up hope on escaping.

" You haven't been acting yourself lately," Jessica noted, " not since Marcello condemned us here."

" I just…" Angelo trailed off trying to figure out how to put into words what he thought.

" Your worried about what's going to happen, aren't you? Marcello has to have found the scepter by now," Jessica confirmed for him.

" I always wonder, if I hadn't shown up on the doorsteps of Maella Abbey, would he still have turned out the way he is today?" Angelo mused aloud absentmindedly.

" You mean the arrogant asshole or the rude conman? I hate to tell you this, but I think they're both inherited traits," Jessica replied off handedly.

Angelo chuckled amused at the jab at his personality. Jessica had not been the first person to tell him that Marcello and him had some things in common personality wise; Abbot Francisco had been the one to make note of it first, infuriating Marcello.

As the chuckles subsided Angelo looked back over the bars of the cage. " You know, over the years I stopped trying to make him smile at me again like he did when I first met him. Everything I did or said angered him. When I rose to Templar position his agitation was venomous. I knew then that he could never accept me. I would always be an obstacle in his way."

" You wanted to think of him as your older brother," Jessica ventured carefully.

" Yes, so in order for him to take notice of me I began causing as much racket as I could. I was the trouble maker of the Abbey and if I wasn't out at the pub in Simpleton I was at the Abbey flirting with the girls," Angelo said. At the dirty look that suddenly flared in Jessica's eyes Angelo quickly put his hands up in a gesture of peace. " Hey! I had to find something to keep from getting bored," he defended.

" Right," she replied her eyebrow rising in disbelief. " I do sort of understand what it's like wanting your brother to take notice of you. I know I pulled a few stunts on Alistair that I later regretted because I knew it was just because I wanted him to pay attention to me."

At Jessica's forlorn expression Angelo leaned a little bit closer to her. " I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up bad memories for you. I heard about what happened."

" Oh… So the Guv told you?" Jessica asked.

He nodded at her inquiry knowing that she would see him out of the corner of her eye, his own eyes seeking out the leader of their group lying near the stagnant water in the back of the cage. The guy didn't seem to have any problem sleeping out here. Then again he wasn't have the best of dreams either, probably worried about the horse princess, he tossed and turned quite a bit.

" I'm not really all that sad anymore after all this time. I know that I haven't fully avenged Alistair yet, but it's no longer just about getting revenge. I have to stop Rapthorne before anyone else has to suffer," she established. " That's why we have to get out of here."

Angelo sat back closing his eyes for a second in consideration. " I don't think I can kill Marcello. Even after everything that's happened, even if he did kill the High Priest."

" That's perfectly fine. We may have to knock some sense into him, but we won't kill him. Ne, the Guv ain't heartless you know. You don't have to worry all the time," Jessica quipped.

" Knock some sense into him, eh?" Angelo remarked a smirk lifting his features. " I don't know if you **can** knock sense into that guy."

" Are you already giving up?" she asked quietly looking out beyond the bars as the guard leaned back in his chair, snoring.

" No… no you're right. It's just-"

" LET ME OUT!"

Angelo jumped at the sudden outburst, as did most of the other inhabitants in the cage, looking around for the source of the voice.

" I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING."

Angelo finally found Rolo tossing and turning in his sleep as he yelled. Yangus sighed from where he sat up before standing and walking over to Rolo. He gave the other man a sharp kick in the ribs before walking back to the corner he'd been sleeping in.

Rolo sat up quickly looking a bit confused at his surroundings before he looked down at the ground in despair. Obviously he had been hoping that his nightmare had been only that…a nightmare.

" I don't think he's in the best of moods," Angelo noted absently before his gaze drifted back to Jessica who was lying down beside him.

" This place is getting to all of us. We should get some rest, you too Angelo, and don't worry about your brother," she added.

Angelo nodded his agreement ending the conversation as he watched Jessica falling asleep. He quickly undid the clasp of the cloak he wore and wrapped it around Jessica's shoulders, making certain she didn't get too cold.

Maybe everything would turn out all right. Maybe…


End file.
